Am I the only one...
or do any of you feel like you might be living in the wrong century?
I am quite certain that in a past life you might have found me
on a homestead in the midwest prairie.
Perhaps that is why I surround myself with antiques and wish that most of them
were an integral part of daily life...
and not just interesting things to use in my decor.
Regardless, as my kids say...
"if the zombie apocalypse happens"...
or, as I consider... the electrical grid ever goes down,
we will be just fine.
We have enough of the old-time stuff that my do-it-yourself mentality
will make good use of.
The second half of what the kids say is "we are heading to the farm."
Yesterday, being Monday, was laundry day.
And although I used my electric washing machine,
if I had to, I could certainly use this old mechanical machine.
I'd heat my water over the fire and fill the wooden barrel.
Then I'd sit beside the washer pumping the handle up and down
to agitate the clothes while I read a book with the other hand.
(Note to self: look for a washer with a foot pump....so you can knit at the same time!)
HA!
Whenever the weather is good, the sheets get hung on the line to dry.
To me there is nothing more delightful than crawling into a freshly made bed
with sheets that were dried out in the fresh air and sunshine.
And I am certain that on those nights I sleep all the better!
The second half of laundry is ironing.
I realize that ironing is a dying art... most of our kids don't use irons,
and many don't own them.
Because I wear mostly wool, cotton and linen, I still need to iron
if I don't want to look like an unmade bed.
Also with sewing... an iron is essential.
Recently, the door that covers the water intake hole fell off of my iron.
Now, this iron is maybe a year old.
It wasn't expensive... but really? A year?
There is nothing that gets under my skin more than appliances, large or small,
that don't last.
I know that this is a planned phenomenon... thank you, capitalism.
And I suppose that most of us resign ourselves to being victimized by
manufacturers and corporate greed.
Not this girl.
Nope.
This girls gets busy and writes letters...
explaining that as a consumer we deserve better,
and the world deserves better.
As I wrote to Sunbeam - maker of the broken iron -
"this is a large part of our environmental problems...
and the ever-growing piles of discarded items that end up in our landfills."
(I know... I used to own a Rowenta, German made, and a great iron...
but I opted for a cheaper iron last time.)
Note to self: cheaper isn't cheaper in the end.
The letter worked.
A new iron arrived yesterday.
Does this solve the problem?
No.
Did I have to have a new iron?
No.
I could have used an iron that leaked.
But...
If we don't send clear messages to companies that we are not going to tolerate
cheap items, then nothing will ever change.
And if enough of us made noise...
if enough items had to be replaced by those companies in order to quiet us,
perhaps those companies would strive to make better products that last longer.
Most of my adult life, I have taken on the role of being my own consumer advocate.
I have written honest letters when I have been unhappy with good or services.
And most times I have gotten results... good results.
(It helps to be kind when writing these letters.)
Not wanting to trash a still useful iron, I took the old iron to the thrift store.
Next time, I will merely switch to this iron:
Nothing to break with this one!
See why I would rather use the antiques?
Recently, my dishtowels have started to look more like rags.
Not wanting to buy more dishtowels, I opted for making some instead.
Dishtowel fabric is a thing... in case you wondered.
Simply cut to length, hem the ends, "et voila"...
We were treated to a beautiful day, yesterday.
The sun shone, the mercury rose to the mid-forties,
and the birds were singing!
It was heavenly, and I enjoyed it while I could.
Because...
this morning it's supposed to snow (not a lot, though.)
Yesterday's sunrise...
I could just tell it was going to be a great day!
P.S:
I am often asked if I sleep... because I post my blog at 3:00 AM.
I am very sound asleep, usually by 10 PM each night
and generally sleep through until 5 AM in the morning.
I write my blog posts either in the late afternoon or the early evening of the preceding day.
Blogger gives me the option of scheduling when I wish to publish
each post.
And magically, while I am dead asleep... it all happens on the web.
P.P.S:
To Louise... your chicken problem was addressed a couple times in yesterday's
comments.
To Louise... your chicken problem was addressed a couple times in yesterday's
comments.
Comments
That tea towel project sounds like something even I could do. Is the fabric 100% cotton? I'd be willing to give it a go.
You have snow, we have more rain. Could we trade? ;0D
Enjoy it whatever you do..xxoo
I agree, we need to speak up, write letters, when things break down, stop performing in such a short time.
Dishwasher just quit, six years old, ridiculous. I washed our dishes by hand for a few months and then I “caved!”
Love the picture of you in the beginning . . .
Happy and glowing . . .
Sheets dried outdoors . . . the best!
My sheets had never seen a dryer until recent months, (because of shoulder surgery.)
Fresh aired dried sheets will be happening here soon!
Thanks as always for such interesting posts
Julia
I'm a diy kind of person in crafting and gardening, so you'll be on my list to follow!
I'm a diy kind of person in crafting and gardening, so you'll be on my list to follow!